ELL: Moderator

[endangered-languages-l at carmen.murdoch.edu.au]

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From: maia at acd.ufrj.br (Marcus Antonio Rezende Maia)
Subject: ELL: Moderator
To: endangered-languages-l at carmen.murdoch.edu.au
Date: Thu, 30 Sep 1999 12:49:03 -0300 (GRNLNDST)
Cc: marcusmaia at alternex.com.br
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 I vote for an unmoderated, spontaneous list, even though exaggerations are
 likely to happen in the list as in the world. Slammings and flames,
 unpleasant as they may be, do not usually last too long. I'd rather be in a
 lively, emotional,
 exciting list in which people talk, discuss, argue and even fight than in an
 unnatural antiseptic list. The missionary topic is a relevant topic to be
 discussed in ELL. It is an extremely hard topic to deal with and I find it
 only natural that a debate on it has stirred all these feelings. And so,
 what? We do not need to leave the room slamming the door behind us! It is
 enough to press the delete key in our computers.
 Marcus Maia
 The Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
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Date: Thu, 30 Sep 1999 13:39:58 -0700
From: "J. DIEGO QUESADA" <dquesada at chass.utoronto.ca>
Organization: UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
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Subject: ELL: Apologies
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Date: Thu, 30 Sep 1999 13:39:58 -0700
From: "J. DIEGO QUESADA" <dquesada at chass.utoronto.ca>
Organization: UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
To: endangered-languages-l at carmen.murdoch.edu.au
Subject: ELL: Apologies
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Dear all:

     I must admit that in some postings I have crossed the border between
     vehemence and inflammatoriness; the tone has gone a bit too high. I
     therefore sincerely apologize to all subscribers of this list, who have
     thereby felt hurt in some way. It was not my intention to degrade the
     subscribers nor the topics dealt with.

     		 I do have to note, however, that the topic I put forward a
     		 couple of
		 weeks ago was born out of honest desire to go beyond
     		 immediacy; I
		 reiterated that the intention was no to create phobias
     		 against any
		 organization and that the initial query was inspired out of
     		 confusion
		 for what I was experiencing during my field work. It was not
     		 my
		 intention either to trivialize the discussion into
     		 cataloguing
		 missionary work as good or bad; my "Wrap-up" on the alleged
     		 SIL alias
		 (which was not one) did not go in that direction, just as the
     		 initial
		 posting was tone-neutral.

		 	 But, by just placing the query, the first attacking
		 	 voices were heard,
			 calling the query "prejudice", as though there
		 	 existed the possibility
			 of people free of that. A kind of demonization of me
		 	 -which reached its
			 peak yesterday- ensued. As some susbscribers have
		 	 mentioned today, the
			 fact that a topic per se touches some people's
		 	 sensibilities is no
			 condition to demonize and/or ostracize the
		 	 discussants, or to refer to
			 the topics put forward as trivial. In fact, as far as
		 	 my memory can
			 recall, none of those disappointed by the fact that
		 	 the topic was put
			 forward went beyond expressing 'surprise' or 'stun'.

			 	 Thus, though I regret that the discussion was
			 	 spiced with flames, I
				 have to speak in defense of the topic, which
			 	 -again- was neither
				 conceived as a witch-hunt nor as a trivial
			 	 black-and-white discussion;
				 the latter, it goes without saying, would not
			 	 lead anywhere because
				 people have their own views (which might as
			 	 well be called "prejudices",
				 as it is no secret that science is not
			 	 neutral). So, I would not be as
				 naive as to put a discussion in those
			 	 terms. Quite the opposite, I think
				 the discussion on the alleged alias was
			 	 enriching because it disclosed
				 very revealing (at least for me)
			 	 connections. Had I contented myself
				 with the response: "SIL and New Tribes are
			 	 two separate and different
				 organizations", much of what I learned
			 	 through the discussion,
				 especially thanks to the valuable information
			 	 coming from Brazil, would
				 still be ignored by me.

				       I thus reiterate my apologies for the
				       tone I used at times, just as I
				       reiterate that feeling uneasy because a
				       certain topic is dealt with is
				       not sufficient to trivialize the topic
				       nor to demonize the persons who
				       propose it. All that honestly in the
				       name of 'netiquette'.

				       J. Diego Quesada

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